Bloom (INACTIVE)
by Paint a story. Write a picture
Summary: "We're all flowers in this world. Some of us don't grow quite the way we want to, others simply wilt. But some will bloom into something truly beautiful." A story of Rue, Katniss, and how they fall in love in the Hunger Games. Femslash in Ch.14. This story is probably never going to be finished, I don't use fanfiction anymore. If you want closure, write Rueniss :D! It rocks!
1. Chapter 1: The Last Thing

Disclaimer: I don't own The Hunger Games. If I did, I'd probably be rich. I haven't written anything, let alone a fanfiction, in a long time, so go easy on me if this was a crappy first chapter.

This is a story of Katniss and Rue, told from multiple perspectives. Please leave a review, let me know if you like it, because if you do, I might just write some more ;).

**Katniss**

"Good luck, girl on fire" says Cinna, and the last thing I remember of him is his comforting smile, before I'm sent off to the slaughter. Just before the glass cylinder comes down and I lose all contact with him completely, he indicates to me that I should keep my head high, to be strong. And because it's Cinna, I do just that. But that doesn't stop the very palpable tension, that threatens to engulf me where I stand - on a metal plate, ready to be lifted into the Hunger Games, the most brutal sport known to mankind. I begin to ascend into bright sunlight, into the arena where I'll meet my fate. The adrenaline starts pumping around my body, my heart rate quickening along with my breathing, and suddenly I want for this to be over straight away, for someone to just come and kill me now. But no, I have to wait for the full minute. I take in the arena, the grandeur of the golden Cornucopia and the supplies that litter its entrance. The lake far off into the distance - make a note of that, I tell myself, that could be useful. The trees... that's where I'll make a beeline for. As the clock ticks, I take in my fellow tributes. Good luck, I wish them bitterly.

**Peeta**

The last thing I see before I'm lifted into the arena is Portia, trying to conceal the pain of watching yet another tribute leave, that she knows may not come out alive. She is from the Capitol, but I can't bring myself to resent her; from the start, she's only been trying to help. And she did pull off an amazing job at the opening ceremonies. Like that makes a difference...

When the plate stops and I'm in the arena, I ignore everything and immediately look for Katniss. She sees me but refuses to meet my gaze. Probably already trying to psychologically prepare herself for what's to come, distancing herself so she doesn't have to suffer if I die. When I die. Sighing inwardly, I keep my eyes on the Cornucopia, wondering how I'm going to play this one off. Avoid the risk of the bloodbath and flee with whatever's closest to the plate? No, I don't think I've got much use for a metre of rope and an empty crate. So do I stay and battle it out with the Careers? Then it hits me. The Careers...

**Rue**

The last thing I see before the Launch Room disappears is Metella, my stylist, who actually breaks down in tears for me, which I have no idea how to respond to. I guess I've got bigger things on my mind. How to survive in a place where twenty-three other children and teenagers want me dead. When I see the determination on the faces of my fellow tributes, the muscles on the legs of some of the Careers, who I know will reach the valuable supplies first and kill whoever else tries to... I know my strategy. That pack right in the middle... that's my pack. I can only hope there are some useful things in there, because I won't have time to get anything else before I flee. If I can lie low and play it safe, maybe I might survive for a few days.

I turn around, and immediately, I see her. She'd be hard to miss, the girl on fire. I can't help being fascinated by her, there's something about her that sets her apart from the others. The way she volunteered for her sister, the way she acted when that boy tribute from her District announced his love for her on live television... I decided that once I'm safely out of the way, I'd keep a close eye on her.

All of a sudden, the minute is up, and that's when all hell breaks loose.

"Ladies and gentlemen," booms the voice of Claudius Templesmith. "Let the seventy-fourth Hunger Games begin!"


	2. Chapter 2: Onwards

A/N: You know, I really liked the idea of a bond between Rue and Katniss that became more than just friendship, which is why I wanted to write about it. I'm not sure if the rest of you will like it, but if you do, I'd really super-appreciate it if you just left a review to let me know what you think (you don't have to favourite or subscribe or anything, but it would mean a lot if you at least gave a small review ^.^)

**Katniss**

Fear. It's not the first thing I notice, but it's there, hiding in the shadows, waiting to attack the minute I stop and lose focus on the task at hand. The Cornucopia is far in the horizon now, no doubt that it is still the battleground of a group of children fighting to the death. The Cornucopia is usually where the majority of deaths happen, and I don't bother listening out for the cannon, knowing it won't sound until the fight is over.

Here's the breakdown of this day so far:

Peeta Mellark, my fellow tribute from District 12, the boy who saved me from starvation all those years ago, confessed his undying love for me.

I have said goodbye to my family, friends and everybody that I love, knowing I will never see any of them again.

I noticed her.

I've been launched into an arena with twenty-four other children to fight to the death.

The bag on my back was first sought after by a boy whose blood is still on my face.

The girl from District 2 launched a knife in my direction.

I'm running off into the woods of said arena with said backpack, getting as far away from the bloodshed as possible, only one thing on my mind now: survival.

Eventually, after I feel I've cleared enough ground, and can run no longer, I slow to a steady walk. When even that becomes tiring, I examine my pack for supplies, and for all the useful things inside it, water is not among them. Great, I think to myself. Not even an hour into the arena and I'm already at my first crisis. Survival in the arena was never going to be easy.

**Rue**

Safety. Well, I may not exactly be safe, but I'm out of harm's way for now. I think I succeeded in keeping a low profile. I can't see any reason why someone would come after me personally, and even if they do... well, it's not the first time I've had to hide. Surviving in a forest is second-nature. The backpack helps a great deal; within I find a slingshot (that could be useful,) a bottle of iodine, some socks, a loaf of bread, a length of rope, a pair of socks, and... a water skin! Suddenly, my thoughts turn to Katniss Everdeen. The girl on fire. I hope that she has water, too, she won't last days without it. Then I wonder, why Katniss? Of all the tributes to think about, what sets her apart? Her pin, the mockingjay? No, it's something more than that...

I scale my way up a tree before my distraction allows someone to surprise me. But I can see from the safety of this tall oak that no danger is forthcoming. Not yet, anyway. I think about my mentor, a kind, motherly woman called Seeder, and wonder if she'll be able to scrape up any sponsors to send gifts my way. Then again, who would send the tiny, scared girl from District 11 anything? I'm distinctly aware of the fact that I hardly made an impression on the other tributes. I may be fast, but I can't hold a sword or shoot an arrow with a bow or throw a spear or make traps or anything like that. I doubt the audience are expecting me to last long.

It looks like I may need an ally.

**Rebecca**

Exhaustion. I don't bother to run anymore, I'm as far away from the Cornucopia as you can get, but even keeping up a slow walk, it takes all my willpower to keep moving. The sun is starting to set, and I know that I'm going to have to make camp soon, so I find an ideal clearing and crash more than sit on the floor. My supplies are meagre. A bucket, which didn't even come with supplies, but is being used to carry the blackberries I found in the wood and the only other item I could find at the Cornucopia of any worth: matches. I put down the bucket, eat the remainder of the blackberries, and huddle on the floor, suddenly all too aware of how cold it is.

I look at the box of matches longingly. At first, I'm not sure that lighting a fire would be the most sensible thing to do, but I reason that the Career tributes will have other things on their mind right now and it should be safe just for half an hour or so. So I collect some branches and get a fire going. At last, heat! I huddle over the fire protectively, willing it not to go out, but thankfully, it remains alight. I curl up around it on the floor, not comfortable, but a little less cold. Sleepiness wraps its tendrils around me, and within five minutes, I'm already fast asleep.

**Peeta**

Despicable. That one word would sum up the entirety of the group I found myself among at the start of the game, probably even myself if I'm to play the part convincingly. I remind myself, this is all for her, for Katniss. If I know where the Careers are, I can keep them away from her. Unfortunately, they're thinking along the same lines: if they have me, then Katniss will be easy pickings.

Being part of the Career pack does have its advantages though. In most of the Hunger Games, the Careers are the ones with the best supplies. Cato, Clove, Glimmer, Marvel and Caitlin, as I learn their names are, already have theirselves a tent and the majority of the food from the Cornucopia. Being based near the lake, we have an almost abundant supply of water. Of course, this alliance can't last long, as Cato, Clove and Caitlin evidently don't trust me. Once I find Katniss, I've outlived my usefulness, and then at least one of them will probably turn on me. Oh well.

"Come on, keep up," yells Cato. Marvel is lagging behind significantly. I have no idea what he did to his leg, but whatever it is, it means he's a liability for the Career pack. He doesn't answer back, knowing that Cato has a short temper, but he does try to limp a little faster. Caitlin gives him a shove from behind.

"Lay off him," I warn her, and she shoots me a dirty look, but joins rank with the rest.

I don't care about any of them. The biggest question on my mind is: how am I going to make sure that these deranged children don't kill Katniss?


	3. Chapter 3: Run

**Cato**

The five of us crash through the jungle, not bothering to measure our footfall. We are the Career pack, nobody is going to come after us. We're the hunters, not the hunted. I'm vaguely aware in the back of my mind that the threat of the Gamemakers is very real, but I push any inkling of fear away. I've been preparing my whole life for this, and I'm not going to be defeated by petty little men in robes pushing buttons. I smile briefly at the thought of myself sitting in the victor's chair at the end of all this, going back home to District 2 to live a life of luxury. Not that it's that bad back home, but... just think of what someone could do with all that money.

Suddenly, I'm jolted out of my reverie by Caitlin, who's pointing over the treeline. Smoke! This just got a lot better.

**Peeta**

The second I see the smoke, I can only think "Please don't let that be Katniss." But then I reason with myself that she wouldn't be that stupid, and I bet she knows how to survive without having to resort to fire. The force of my bond with the Careers drags me over to the source of the flames, which takes us about ten minutes to reach, but when we do, I breathe a sigh of relief. I can tell that the small figure huddled on the ground isn't Katniss from the way the fire illuminates her rounded features. She's not pretty, she's just an innocent, defenceless girl who was too cold to brave the night. Suddenly, she snaps awake, having sensed that she's not alone.

**Rebecca**

When I wake, my worst fears are confirmed: the four Careers and that lover-boy from District 12 are grouped around me. I know I'm in trouble before I spot the sword in one of their hands. I scrabble up and try to run, but find the evil girl from 2 blocking my way, snarling at me with a knife in her hand.

"Back off, Clove, she's mine," barks the boy with the sword.

"No, no, please, leave me alone! I'll do anything, I'll help you, I will!" I cry, but there is no mercy on any of the faces I see before me. The brute steps forward and next thing I know, I'm on the floor in agony, blood pouring from my leg, the pain so intense that I nearly black out. I can barely muster a scream any more. I know without having to examine the stab wound that I've barely got minutes left. I can just about make up several pairs of feet, walking away from what they think is already a corpse waiting to be collected.

**Katniss**

Despite her idiocy - I know it's a her from her pleas for mercy - I can't bear to listen to her screams. I've long since found safety in the perch of a tree, but I'm not sure how much longer I'll be safe with that stupid girl lighting a fire right next to me and bringing the Careers straight to her. It's just my luck that they're now heading in my direction, too. I can hear them arguing, but right now I'm wondering why the cannon hasn't sounded. I realise that they're arguing over the same thing, it seems that the sadistic, brutish boy from District 2 was the one to wound her. I keep a careful ear out for their words in case they're of any value.

**Peeta**

"We're wasting time!" I say. "I'll go finish her myself and let's move on!" I really don't want to do this, but I reason that at least her suffering will end if I and not Cato am the one to finish the job. I return to the clearing and kneel down by the girl, who by now is surrounded by a pool of blood at her legs, barely conscious. I lean in close and whisper to her "I'm sorry," before driving the knife into her heart.

**Katniss**

No. No, it can't be. I'd know that voice anywhere, and there was no mistaking that that was Peeta Mellark's voice I heard. He's with the Careers! As much as it shocks me, part of me isn't surprised, knew deep down that he'd betray me like this in the end. After all, only one of us can win. But from the moment the realisation that he is among the Careers hit me, so too did the knowledge that me and him, the whole star-crossed lover dynamic, can never work. What good is it being in love when both of us are trying to kill each other? I never wanted any of this in the first place, never wanted for him to reveal his love for me on live television and force us both into that tactic before and during the Games.

And I know that I have more important things to worry about, so in the process of severing the bond between us, I shove aside the hurt and betrayal, and start thinking about how I'm going to get away from him and his Career buddies. No, I really am in luck this time; they're moving away, looking elsewhere. They haven't seen me! And I don't make a point of looking at them either, I just listen for their fading footsteps. After about a minute or two, I jump down from the tree and start thinking about my next move.

**Rue**

The birds are going quiet. That's the first sign. People think that you need to listen for the obvious signs like twigs breaking or leaves crunching to know when somebody is coming, but if you listen carefully to the animals, they will know before you do. So I don't need to listen to the branches breaking, but the second I register the silence, I flee. Twelve years spent outdoors, and the fact that I'm pretty small, means I barely make a noise as I run, but soon enough, I'm going to have to hide. It doesn't matter if they know I'm here or not, they'll find me eventually if I'm out in the open.

When I think I've put enough distance between myself and them, I scramble as high up a tree as I can, high enough to keep a lookout, but not so high that I can't easily disappear into the tangle of leaves if I need concealment. I wait five minutes. Then ten minutes. Then fifteen. When I still don't hear anyone, I reason that they must have followed another trail, and make my way down. Nobody jumps out of the bushes, so I carry on the opposite way I came in the hopes that that will take me away from where they are.

A flash of gold. Was that real? No, it was in my mind... no, more like a memory. A gold pin, a mockingjay emblazoned on its surface. Why did I remember that again? I push it out of my mind, I can't lose focus. My water is running out; it's essential that I find a source before the dehydration gets to me.

Another flash. Gold? No, amber. Red. Orange. Wait, this isn't a memory, the thing flickering in the corner of my vision is real. I don't need to turn around to know what it is, I can already smell the smoke. For the second time this day, I run for my life, distinctly aware that I'm being chased by a pillar of flames. I can run very fast, but it takes a herculean effort to outrun this blaze, and already the smoke is overpowering me. I can't even stop to let out the hacking coughs, the poison already seeping into my body, making me dizzy.

Why are they sending an inferno after me? No, I already know the answer to that: I've been lying low, playing it safe from the start. That will not do; there must be action. Or maybe they're not sending it at me, maybe I've just been caught in the crosshairs of an attack on another tribute. Either way, there's no point on ruminating because if I don't get away from it, I'll die.

The flames finally start to recede, but the air is still heavy with smoke, so I carry on running, though it feels like my limbs are made of lead. The effort is becoming more and more intense, and finally, I have to stop. The air is still not clear, but I can't will myself to move any more, and at least there's no more fire. If I'm not being targeted any more, I wonder... who is?

When I finally muster some energy, I scale a tree again and wait for the next round.


	4. Chapter 4: Stalemate

**Katniss**

The question that flashes in the forefront of my mind isn't "How am I going to get out of this," but rather "Why am I always running?" Every breath is painful, and I can barely move my limbs, let alone run for my life, and in the Hunger Games, I'm always running for my life. First there was a trail of Gamemaker fire to evade, then fireballs were launched at me, giving me two agonising burns. And then, when I finally found solace, I awoke to the sound of the Career pack approaching once more. Only this time, they know where I am.

So here I am, tearing through the forest, just trying not to tear a muscle, and it's only the thought of District 2's bulky arms around my neck that keep me going, that keep me placing one foot in front of another, that stop me from just letting go and falling to the floor in exhaustion.

I find a good tree, and just manage to make my way up to the bough when they crash through the jungle. For a second, I worry they might pursue me, but then I see that they're ill-equipped to go tree-climbing. Cato, as I learn his name is from the exchanges between the Careers, tries to go up after me anyway, but snaps a branch and falls with a heavy thud. He snarls at me like a wild animal whose prey is out of reach. The District 1 girl tries to hand him something that he pushes away. A bow! No, not just any bow, _the_ bow that sat there in the Cornucopia, just out of reach, ripped from my grasp because of a distraction. And who distracted me? Peeta.

I wonder briefly, through the haze of my anger, if the District 1 girl will use the bow, so I scurry further up the tree as a precaution. But it turns out that she's an extremely poor shot, and misses me by a metre. The arrow, _my_ arrow lodges in a nearby branch, so I pull it out and wave it at her tantalisingly. I consider using the arrow as a weapon, but I doubt that I'll get any of them from here with an arrow and no bow.

And so we've reached a stalemate. They can't come up, and I can't come down. Who's going to make the next move?

**Rue**

The Careers again. From my vantage point, I recognise one of them as the Mellark boy, Katniss' district partner, and wonder what on Earth he's doing among the Careers. Weren't he and Katniss presented as lovers? I can make out Katniss herself nearby, perched in a tree with no visible means of escape. I catch myself worrying about her again. _Why? Why?_ I keep asking myself, but come up with no answer.

I balance myself on the outer branch and leap to the next tree, and then the next, until I'm right next to her. I don't think she noticed me, but I climb up higher anyway just so I can get a proper look at her. Her dark hair is disheveled but somehow with an order to it; her grey eyes constantly darting downward remind me of a bird. Her fear is palpitable and surrounds her like an aura; she knows there's no way out of this situation.

And I would've thought the same thing if I hadn't suddenly noticed the tracker-jacker nest above her head.

**Peeta**

What are you going to do, Katniss? What are you going to do? I'm sat on the floor, looking up at the vague shape that suggests her presence, knowing that there's no way out of this for her unless I help her. If I do that, I die for sure, but... well, if she would be safe, it would be worth it.

Glimmer cradles her bow protectively, and I don't wonder why she doesn't just try to shoot Katniss down; she could barely hit a stationary elephant with a bow and arrow. All of us are too bulky to follow Katniss, even slight, evil little Caitlin.

"What happens now, Cato?" I find myself blurting out. He shoots me a dirty look.

"We wait," is all he says. So that's what we do.

**Rue**

Any animal under observation for long enough will eventually sense that they are being watched; humans are no exception. Katniss turns around, mystified at first, and then startled when she recognises me. I point a shaky finger up above her, and when she looks up, I can see the cogs beginning to fall into place. She realises that she's not under threat, but that she has a weapon in her hands.

This is no longer any of my business, and if she does decide to use the tracker-jacker nest to her advantage, I want to be as far away as possible, so I jump from tree to tree, all the while wondering if Katniss will be able to use the nest in such a way that she won't be killed herself.

**Katniss**

What was Rue doing here?, I wonder. No, I can worry about that later. I scale my way up the tree, and bring out the District 2 girl's knife. I can't sever the nest, I'll have to bring the whole top of the tree down. I'm sure the Capitol will be loving this, I reflect bitterly as I put the serrated blade to the bark and start to saw as quickly as I can.

It takes a while, and my arms are threatening to pop out of their sockets by the end of it, but soon, I've almost cut all the way through. Briefly, I worry if Peeta will be hurt. And then I remember that he and I aren't friends anymore. With grim determination, I saw the last bit of the tree and shove the heavy bough.

I realise that my machinations didn't go unnoticed when I feel three successive jabs, and a sharp pain as venom courses through my bloodstream. Only three of the tracker-jackers stung me, but even one sting hurts like hell

Below me is an utter pandemonium. The Careers have probably woke to nicer things than a full-scale tracker-jacker attack, and already, plenty of them have been stung before they manage to get away. I make my way down the tree after a minute, not wanting to encounter the tracker-jackers, but not wanting to chance my motor functions as the venom has already reached my brain, and everything is taking on a weird, shiny quality. I'm not sure which is more distracting, the pain, or the hallucinations. As I look down, I realise that Glimmer and that other District 4 girl didn't make it, having received the worst of the stings. I don't let myself brood on their deaths, don't think about the fact that I indirectly killed them. Well, not yet anyway.

Two cannons go off in the distance. Now I did. That's when I slump to the floor and black out, at the whims of my body to let the poison run its course.


	5. Chapter 5: Alliance

A/N: Let me know what you think of the second section; I've never seen anyone write in third person present tense before, so I wasn't sure if it looked any good from an outsider perspective. But I decided to keep it like that, and if people think it's weird then I won't do it again.

**Rue**

As is my talent, I lie low and keep to the shadows, but I can't stay away from her for long. Every now and then, I have to go back to check if she's alright, drawn to the sight of her like a magnet; or maybe it would be more appropriate to say a moth to a flame. But right this moment, Katniss Everdeen is no flame, her fire has been out for almost two days now. During that time, I tentatively made her comfortable while she was asleep, while I had made _sure_ that she was asleep; taking her backpack off of her back and resting her head against it like a pillow, occasionally giving her sips of water and spoonfuls of berries. A life in District 11 made it easy to recognise the safe ones to eat. I also made sure that the stingers from the tracker-jackers were out of her body, but fortunately, it seems that she was sensible enough to remove them first.

I'm sitting not far from the clearing where she's unconscious when I hear sounds coming from her. Low moans. I freeze, afraid to make a move that might incriminate myself, then slowly move to hide behind a tree to observe her. She's coming to, and is in a lot of pain. She rummages around in her pack for a bottle of water, only to find it empty.

Oops.

Suddenly, she whips her head round, stumbling to her feet, having sensed that she is not alone, trying to locate the intruder. Then her eyes fall upon me, poking hesitantly out from the tree, and I know she recognises me because she lowers her guard. Rolls her eyes. Smiles.

**Rue and Katniss**

"The Careers aren't the only ones who can make alliances, you know," says Katniss, and Rue feels a fluttering in her stomach. This was far more than she had dared hoped for.

"You want me for an ally?" she says uncertainly, stepping out into the open.

"Why not? You did save me after all." The beginnings of a welcoming smile spread across Katniss' face. Rue doesn't know what to say. She does want to be her ally, but... building up a level of trust with someone only to have to have it destroyed later on in the games is...

"You want some food?" Katniss holds out some meat from her bag, and that's when it occurs to Rue that she can't start worrying about the future when she has the present to deal with. And working together is far better than working alone. So she comes closer and sits right next to Katniss, but is still too shy to accept the food. Katniss must sense this, because she presses it into her lap and insists that she eat it anyway.

She wants to express gratitude, but she realises that helping her would be of a lot more use, so she offers to help with the tracker-jacker stings. Katniss' eyes widen as Rue pulls out some leaves she found in the jungle. "How do you know where to find those?" says Katniss, but before Rue can answer, observes "District 11, of course. Agriculture." Rue puts the leaves in her mouth, chews them up, then applies them to Katniss' stings, and the relief is instantaneous, as if the pain was never there. "I'll look out for those in future," Katniss grins. Then, Katniss notices Rue's arm, where she picked up a burn from the fire. "Here, I've got something for that," she says, and pulls out for the burn medicine. Now it's Rue's turn to be surprised.

"You have generous sponsors," she says enviously.

"Don't worry," Katniss places a somewhat awkward hand on Rue's shoulder as a gesture of friendship, "As the Games go on, people will see how clever you are, and they'll be lining up by the dozens to sponsor you."

"You think so?" Rue smiles, but Katniss merely unscrews the lid of the medicine and gets to work on the burn.

Later on, we empty our backpacks and pool our supplies together in our camp. A sleeping bag, iodine, some wire, a pair of socks, a knife, and -

"Night-vision glasses," Rue explains about what Katniss thought was a pair of sunglasses. Both of us have empty water containers, so we decide our first mission is to find water. But at Katniss moves to get up, Rue places a hand on her arm.

"Did you mean what you said before... about being allies?"

"Of course I meant it," says Katniss, mystified. She doesn't care what anyone else thinks about it, Katniss is confident that teaming up with Rue is the sensible thing to do. But then little Rue takes her by surprise, by drawing her into an embrace, holding onto Katniss' warmth. Katniss doesn't speak, just hugs Rue back, and we stand there in silence for a while, until we notice the disturbance.

A noise is coming from the east. Someone crashing through the trees at a very high speed, heading straight for us.


	6. Chapter 6: It can't be

A/N: My friend wanted a story dedicated to her, but as I don't have an official bound and published story (yet,) Natasha Khan, this chapter is dedicated to you :). All my love 3

**Katniss**

Rue is tugging on my arm, whispering fervently "Come on, let's go!" But instead, I hold up a finger in warning to Rue, and stay put. Part of it is the fact that whoever is approaching is making no attempt to conceal their movements, but is very obviously running towards us, crashing through the forest with the haphazard movements of someone not used to even setting foot in a forest. But it goes deeper than that; I recognise that gait, the heavy tread, from my time spent with him in training. And for some reason, that recognition does not make me want to run away, but stay here and wait for him to burst through the trees.

**Peeta**

I burst through the trees, and find who I've been looking for, only she's not alone. I recognise the willowy, dark-skinned girl from 11 from how she stalked Katniss during training. Rue, Katniss said her name is. Then I remember why I've been running.

"Katniss, you have to leave, now! There's no time to explain!" I blurt out. "They're coming for you!" The pair waste no time arguing or asking questions, and if they want to know why I betrayed the Careers, they don't ask. Instead, they sprint off into the woods in the opposite direction I came, and are gone before I have time to register the blow to the back of my head.

I slump to the floor, but quickly get up again before he can land another strike. The pain in my head is unendurable, and I can feel my head throbbing, but I back away from Cato, only to find he isn't alone. Clove and Marvel flank his sides, Caitlin and Glimmer already dead from the tracker-jacker attack. All three of them look worse for wear; with ugly plum-sized pustules to match my own where they got stung, and the expressions of three injured wolves who will mercilessly hunt down and kill their attacker. Except I didn't attack them, only betray them, which they must have known was coming anyway. It doesn't stop them.

They advance slowly towards me, and I briefly consider trying to take them out. I could maybe get Marvel to the floor, but Cato and Clove would kill me in an instant. But then, I'm forced to resign to the fact that that may be my fate anyway.

I'm not going to go down without a fight. I bring up my leg and aim to kick Cato in the stomach, but he simply grabs my leg and flips me to the floor, so that I land flat on my face. Then he rips me off the ground and holds me in a head-lock, his muscles bulging, a vein throbbing on his forehead. I know that there's no escape now, that this is my punishment for helping Katniss. Tears threaten to make their way into my eyes, but I don't let them; I will be strong.

I love you, Katniss. I hope you win for your sake, for your family's sake. I hope you live a happy life.

The green of the forests is the last thing I ever see.

**Charlotte**

A scuffle not far from where I'm standing, the sounds of a fight. Angry voices, fist connecting to flesh. A struggle. I decide straight away to move in the opposite direction, but not before I hear the unmistakable sound of a neck-bone being snapped, and I flinch. I don't allow the realisation of what I just heard to get to me, I don't register the cannon going off in the distance, I just focus on stealthily making my way through the forest, looking for someone less dangerous to pilfer from. Then I remember.

This is the Hunger Games. Everybody is dangerous.

**Rue**

I'm sure I just heard a cannon. Fleeing from the Careers is more important now, but I can't help wondering who it was, or if Peeta Mellark just sacrificed his own life to save his love.

**Katniss**

Maybe it was Thresh. No, that's impossible, he wouldn't have got caught so early on in the games. Or one of the Careers. I hope it's one of the Careers. The boy from 1 with the bad leg, possibly. It could be... no. Anyone but him. I may have wanted to separate from him but... he can't be... no, it was the District 1 boy, definitely. I don't allow any other possibility to enter my head.


	7. Chapter 7: Stories

**Katniss**

Water is still an imperative in The Hunger Games. I know from a few days ago, where I brushed knuckles with death for a lack of fluids. My water bottle was full, I'm sure of it, so I have to wonder who or what used it up. No point reflecting on that now, though.

The tables have turned and now I'm the one following Rue, who's acting on a hunch that there's a stream nearby.

"More than a hunch, Katniss, I was there a few days ago," she explained earlier. Well, that's something to go on at least.

It doesn't take long to find the river. Both of us are pretty good at tracking, and we find the signs of the stream (mud trails and wet-nosed animals,) before we hear the gentle melody of the river. That's what Rue called it, anyway. I never found much music in a source of water, but each to their own.

We make the decision to camp by the river; the sound will obscure our voices and make it easier to talk, plus the safest bet is to be near a source just so we don't run out. But Rue doesn't stop for a drink, the first thing she does is to head further down the river and take all of her clothes off to wash herself. I look away, embarrassed, and sort out the remainder of the food; collect some water from the stream with my back turned; lay out our supplies: anything to distract myself. After about ten minutes, when she comes back, she's thankfully no longer naked, and looking a lot better for her troubles.

"Sorry, I've felt so grubby lately, ever since we started the Games," she explained, and sat herself down beside me so our legs are touching. I smile hesitantly.

"I'm used to that feeling." I want to talk about the time I've spent in the forests of District 12, but I have a distinct feeling that wouldn't bring any good back home, considering just how many laws the fact that I hunt in the woods violates. So instead, I say "When you live around coal mines, it's pretty difficult to keep yourself clean."

"We work in the farms," Rue points out. "Dirt and mud everywhere, all day. Keeping clean is a luxury where I live, so I make the most of it." That makes sense. Then a thought occurs to me out of the blue.

"Rue, how are you so good at jumping from tree to tree, like a squirrel without fur?" She grins, happy to have something that she's good at, or possibly pleased with the comparison.

"Tell you what, I'll show you! If -" she cuts across me before I can respond, "you show me how to hunt."

"Deal," I say, and we shake on it; I notice how warm her hand is for such a small person.

So we head off into the foliage, where Rue shows me first how she moves from tree to tree. We perch on the same branch so I can see what she's doing.

"Part of it you have to be the right size for," she admits. "Cato couldn't manage something like this, for instance."

I giggle, a sound that I didn't even know I could make until now. "No, he'd bring the whole tree down." She grins again.

"But the other part of is the technique. As long as you know where you're going to land and where you're standing - on a brittle or a tough branch, etc. - then you'll be fine." She demonstrates, and gracefully leaps from one bough to the next, making several jumps before she comes back in a circle to the tree where I'm standing. "Your turn," she points to the next tree.

I brace myself, testing the branch - neither too thin nor unyielding, perfect - and before I can change my mind, leap to the next tree. I don't quite make the branch I was aiming for, but I head straight into the middle, and desperately clutch the bark in an effort to stop myself tumbling to the ground. But I can climb trees just fine, so I make my way up to the next branch, and try it again, not to be put off. After two or three more jumps, I think I'm starting to get quite good at this, and can almost do it as fast as Rue. The audience must be loving this. Rue certainly is.

"You picked that up really fast," she comments, and suddenly, I see it in her smile. I realise why I like her so much. She's Prim. That must be it; she and my little sister are alike in so many ways. That has to explain why we've become so close so suddenly.

Rue hops down from the tree, and I follow, heading back to our camp by the river to get my bow. Now it's time to make true on my promise and show her how to hunt.

We start out slow and steady. I show her how to hold a bow, how to position her arm and the angle to rest it. I let her play with the string a few times, pulling it and snapping it experimentally, getting a feel for the weapon. A few times, she stops and stares at it quizzically, as if she was having a conversation with the bow, as if it were saying things that surprised her. When she gets used to the bow, I give her an arrow, and teaches her how to shoot it. She's very shaky at first, but after ten minutes, she can already shoot an arrow into a tree. After thirty minutes, she can shoot a stationary target. After an hour, she's become so good at this that I think it's time to show her how to do the real thing.

I don't need to tell Rue to be quiet as we ghost through the jungle, because she's so good at that anyway, and eventually, we find the perfect target; a fox. She raises the bow as she's practised so many times, releases the string, and skewers the fox through the stomach. I'm amazed, amazed that she picked it up that quickly. Alright, she didn't shoot it through the eye, but the fact that she managed to hit it at all was incredible.

We carry the fox back to the camp, and I offer to skin and prepare it for her, but Rue wants to try this as well, so I hand her the knife and give her a little guidance from time to time. As it's daytime, we risk a small fire to cook the meat, and with an abundance of water to wash it down, the two of us enjoy a good meal. Katniss and Rue. Together.

**Rue**

I think about the day Katniss and I have spent together. After looking after her, we became allies. Then, when we were in safety after the Careers that Peeta Mellark warned us about, we sat by one another and talked; taught each other things that we know. All in all, I think that the audience must be fascinated with what's going on now, and I can only hope that this is enough to ensure the Gamemakers don't send anything else after us. A rabid pack of mutts, or a flood, or another fire, or a lightning storm... no, I decide. They'll be happy watching two girls together... doing what exactly? Bonding? I feel a lot closer to Katniss Everdeen than I did three days ago, but I guess that we're friends now, right? "Ally" doesn't really make us feel like anything more than two people who are put together to survive because they have to. I'm sure it's a lot more than that.

This silence won't do, leaving me to my own thoughts.

"Katniss," I start, and rest my head on her shoulder, "Tell me a story."

So I listen to her telling me the story of the reaping day, where her sister, Primrose Everdeen, was selected despite the phenomenal odds against. One entry in thousands, whereas her sister had twenty. I've seen the footage on television, but I listen to Katniss tell it from her perspective, how she couldn't bear to see Prim walking up to the stage, quivering like a mouse headed for a meat grinder. How she volunteered to take Prim's place because she wouldn't accept any girl that she loved so much as Prim being subjected to a fate like that. How she felt when it was she herself who walked up to the stage instead, knowing that she may still never see Prim, her mother, her friend Gale, or anyone again. How the blood pounded in her ears from the silence that followed where there should have been applause. How District 12 could not bear to see Katniss Everdeen go.

I realise, by the end of her story, there are tears in my eyes. Katniss had been utterly focused as she talked, staring ahead of her, but now she snaps out of it when she realises I'm crying, and brushes my tears away.

"I'm sorry," I get out. "I just can imagine all of it, how horrible it must have been for you... the - the lengths you went to for someone that you love." She smiles half-heartedly.

"I'm no different from the rest of us. We all go to great lengths for love," she says, and wraps an arm around me. When I've stopped crying, she says to me "Now it's your turn to tell me a story." The Capitol must have been riveted throughout all of this, clutching the edge of their leather seats, and I'm absolutely sure that the cameras are focused on us. She's right, it is my turn. But not very many interesting things have happened to me in my life. What could I tell her about? And then the last thing she said to me sticks in my mind, and I know what I'm going to tell her. About the first time I fell in love.

"I'm the oldest of six children," I begin. "There's me, Rose, Daisy, Lupin, Tansy and Violet. Our mother saw us all as beautiful flowers, and named us so because we all meant so much to her. But in a poor District like District 11, she _needed_ a family too, because later, when we were grown up, we'd be able to support her when she was old and weak. And as someone who had to work in the farms all day anyway as well as look after six children, she was weak, because she could barely look after herself. It never changed the fact that she loved us, and that I loved her, but it meant that I had to take care of my brother and sisters, because noone else could. I had to sneak them food when I could, get them clothes, teach them what I knew, and work as hard as I could to make sure that they didn't have to take tesserae or work in the fields. They all did both anyway." I pause, and realise Katniss hasn't moved in the slightest since I started talking, that she daren't breathe. So I keep on talking.

"I never had any time for love. I never really noticed anyone like that, all that mattered back then was that you worked, that you survived, and for me, that I fed my family. So I didn't know what to think when I fell in love for the first time. It slapped me like a whip, when all of a sudden, all I could think about, all that mattered, was... that person. At first I thought it was an obsession, but it took a while for me to realise that there was far more to it than that, that I was in love. But the worst part of it was, I knew that that person would never, will never love me back."

The firelight is dying, glowing embers feebly shooting into the ground, and the sun is beginning to go down. My head is still resting on her shoulder, and I can feel the vibrations from her throat when she finally talks.

"Who was he? The person you were in love with?" her voice is gentle, full of compassion for little me and my unrequited love.

But I don't answer. I know very well who I was, who I am in love with. And she isn't a boy.


	8. Chapter 8: Not Even Love Can Stand

**Charlotte**

In District 5, there's very little to do but work and watch the games. Which is more painful, it's difficult to say. The landscape - no, cityscape - is cluttered with high-rise buildings, sooty chimneys and factories spewing their poison into the air. Grey is everywhere, as far as the eye can see, and around the District are some of the tallest fences in Panem (possibly in the event that someone glides off a building and tries to get out. Being outside is (only slightly) less desirable than being inside, where The Hunger Games are everywhere. The factories produce enough goods such as televisions (along with their more dangerous outputs,) so that the general population can all afford at least one.

The point of this is, never in all of my life spent watching The Hunger Games have I seen such a strong alliance between two tributes. No... it's much more than an alliance. I can feel the very essence of their relationship from where I crouch in the shadows, watching them. Their bond is far more than one made between two tributes who have to do so to survive. They love one another... but they don't fully realise it yet. No... I'm wrong. She realises it, the pretty brown-skinned girl. She loves the other girl, but the other girl doesn't know of her own feelings. She acts reserved, but still tries to get close to the pretty girl, whereas the pretty girl moves with the intent of someone who knows how they feel and is just wondering how to act upon it.

I stop myself from letting out a sigh. It's beautiful, what I'm seeing before me. But I know, and they eventually will know it too... they can't keep this up, not in The Hunger Games. In a place where death is law, not even love can stand and rebel against it.

**Katniss**

Stories. Funny thing, what they do to you; the more you know about a person, the closer you become to them, until eventually, their presence is like a magnet, and you can't do anything to resist, but just allow yourself to gravitate towards them. Hearing about Rue's harsh live in District Eleven has made me appreciate her even more, for how strong she is, surviving not just for herself, but like me, for her family. A much larger family, too, and in much worse conditions. I doubt there are any Dariuses or Crays in 11. But something's been niggling at me inside.

I think back about the story she told me of the first time she fell in love. I wonder who it was, and what he did to her to make her not answer when I asked her who he was. It must have ran deep, whatever it did, because now she has to seek comfort in me of all people. I don't mind at all though. She's strong in so many ways, she's intelligent, and she's made it this far; I'd have her as a friend any day, not just an ally. And already, she and I are close, drawn together by the mutual need for human contact, I suppose, by the need to have someone looking out for you. The need to survive.

We're still camped in our usual spot by the river, eating what we've managed to kill during the day, mostly silent, when the sun starts to set; the clouds tinged with the red I always stayed out in the evening to watch. The beauty of twilight. And I have someone to share it with, too.

Rue is concentrating on her meal, so I move over to her and direct her to the sky, where she stops eating to gaze in wonder at the colours beginning to unfold in the heavens. None of us dares utter a word, afraid of ruining the moment. But Rue takes me by surprise. She wraps a little, gentle arm around me and brings me down to the ground with her, where we lie together, connected, in admiration of the twilight. Her arm is still around me, so I wrap my arm around her, and we share our body heat, not daring to let one another go cold. The red turns to pink, blossoming across the sky as if whatever's up there has a heart filled with love. The pink slowly fades to orange, convalescing across the sky to show that the Sun, the heat that keeps us strong, that keeps us alive, is still there, and always will be, even if it's hiding. Eventually, the orange becomes a dusky, calm grey. Peace and tranquility; how did we find that here in the Games?

After a while, we decide without words that it would be best to have a sleeping bag for the night, as black pervades the sky and the chill starts to set in. We climb in together, and that's when I know that our trust is absolute, that neither of us is going to kill each other. We don't let go of each other throughout the whole night; she holds on to me, stranded in the sea, no doubt, and I'm her life-support.

The silence is pierced by the anthem, cutting through my reverie, and then I remember. I turn around so I can see the sky. Rue's eyes, reflecting the moonlight like a cat, follow mine, as we wait. Hoping beyond any hope that my suspicions from earlier in the day aren't confirmed. Hoping to dear God that I don't see what I'm dreading.

Hoping I don't see the photo of Peeta Mellark that burns in the sky.


	9. Chapter 9: Protecther

**Rue**

I know grief. In a place like 11, I've seen it many times before, and had to deal with it myself. Plenty of people who had families, those who loved them, died, either out of harsh punishment for minor crimes, or simply from overworking. Everyone works such long hours in the fields of District 11 that it wasn't an uncommon fate of the weak to die of all kinds of exhaustion.

The first time it affected me was when my father died of an incurable illness, that had him bedridden for days. I was young, but mature enough to understand what had happened. Mature enough to spend several days hiding my tears from Peacekeepers, and breaking down only when I was in the confines of my own home; away from Lupin and the girls, away from my mother. The second time was when Isabella died - no, when Isabella was murdered. I had to watch that happen with my own eyes. Issy, as I knew her, was my best friend, the person I confided in, the one who patiently put up with my complaints about a hard life and was there to hold me when it all got too much. It was only long after she was shot in the back of the head for trying to smuggle some of the crops that I realised I had been in love with her. I never told Katniss about her, and I'm not sure I ever will.

I've experienced grief first hand, and it's the worst kind of pain there is, I know that much. So when Katniss sees him in the sky, I see it all in her eyes. Her glistening grey eyes tell me a story that no words could ever. They weave a tale of love, of hurt, trust that was betrayed but feelings that remained, and then, deep inside, the knowledge that,

"I never got to say goodbye," she finishes, her voice thick, tears flowing freely. She doesn't need to say it, we both know it. Whichever way you look at it, Peeta saved us, warned us about the Careers. And I definitely won't voice the thought that that is probably how he met his end; at the strong hands of the Career tributes.

For some reason, I feel a deep heartache, and almost begin to cry myself, but I can't do that. I know the only reason I'm upset is not because Peeta died, but because Katniss is upset. So I don't let any signs of sadness cross my face, but I hug Katniss. It's not like before, where it was me who needed someone to keep me anchored... but now I'm the one keeping her out of the water, I'm the one protecting her. She rests her head on my shoulder and begins to shake, silent, violent sobs wracking through her body.

What love can do to a person.

**Katniss**

I think about half an hour must have passed, but not much has changed, except I'm no longer crying. My head is buried in Rue's shoulder, her hand rhythmically moves up and down to stroke my hair. It's still very dark, but I'm fully aware of every atom of the person I hold onto for dear life. Her hair, dark as the midnight we face together, falls in a curtain over me, gently tickling me. Her hands, so small, are still running through my hair, carefully avoiding tangled clumps in case she tugs on it by accident. Her wide eyes are still open; I can feel her soft gaze upon me, watching over me. How is this sweet little girl of twelve years old able to be my lifeline, to keep the bad away like a very real dream-catcher, shooing away the nightmares and inviting only good in? I'm aware of the fact that I've been a lot calmer in Rue's embrace, but not just that. Over the past day or so, impossible as it sounds, I've been happy, because of her. I've had Rue.

But I can't hold onto her all night. So eventually, I break apart, and instead hold her hand in mine, the pale moonlight illuminating the contrast in our skin; her deep brown, and my pale white. After only a few minutes, by an unspoken agreement, we both decide to try and get some sleep, and settle back in the sleeping bag, still linked by our hands, still held tight by the bonds that have drawn us together, from which there is no breaking apart.

The next day, we move our camp. We stay close to the river, as it offers excellent noise protection, and the best water source there is, but move at least a mile downstream. Before we go, we eliminate all traces of our stay; we find fresh dirt to throw over our tracks, get rid of the remains of our food and fire, and pack whatever's left in our bags. When we find the perfect spot, I decide that today is the day we do something proactive, lest the Games become too dull, and we wouldn't want that. Not with the dreadful arsenal of weapons the Gamemakers have at their disposal to keep us moving. I mention this to Rue.

"So I think the time has come for us to take action," I give her a conspiratorial smile. Her grin stretches all the way to her ears, and I can tell that she's excited by the way she eagerly asks what we're going to do. And I already have a good idea.

"We're going to make a move on the Careers!" I say.

"How? I don't think either of us could take even one of them on," she points out.

"We don't need to. They're not like us, born in poor districts where they had to forage food for themselves. They always have a steady supply of food. So..."

The penny drops, and Rue's eyes are alight as she says "So we take out that supply!"

"Exactly," I wink.

**Charlotte**

Not if I get there first, I think, and sprint off into the woods.


	10. Chapter 10: The Ambush

**Katniss**

It was only a minute or so after I had proposed the ambush to Rue that I heard it. A disturbance in the forest. Rustling and ill-concealed footsteps running away. Much as this worries me, whoever or whatever it is isn't coming towards us, but the opposite, so I don't make a big deal of it, and nor does Rue. After a moment or so, she pipes up nervously,

"So how are we going to do this then?"

That's a good question, and I say so. And then I think about a few days ago, where that stupid girl lit up a fire, and was found by the Careers... that's when it hits me.

"We need a distraction," I realise "Something that will get the Careers on the other side of the arena straight away and give us a chance to take down whatever's there; their food, their weapons, whatever the hell else they've got."

"What are you going to do, take off all your clothes and run off into the woods and hope they follow?" Rue giggled, and I laughed, trying not to imagine that too hard.

"Well, the last person I saw naked around this arena was you, so feel more than free," I winked, but then pressed on before the thought of each other naked became too distracting, "So we light a few fires in the woods. The Careers will follow the smoke, then we'll muscle in on their camp and... oh, then God knows what will happen. I'll figure it out when I get there!" I decide, and we share a conspiratorial smile. But then Rue notices.

"Wait, you said "I"... you think you're going alone?" she says, indignant.

"Rue," I say softly, "I do not want you in any more danger than you're already in. Besides, you have an important job to do if we need that distraction!"

"No," she says, with a finality and authority that I have never heard in her voice before. "You're not risking your neck for me; I'm faster than you are, I'll be able to do whatever it is we need to do and then run."

"This is the Hunger Games," I remind her. "Every second of our current existence qualifies as risking our neck. And I promise you that at the first sign of danger, I'll turn around, run away, find you, find safety," I assure her. She only seems slightly pacified.

"Hey," the thought occurs to me, "How are we going to communicate?"

Rue points to a nearby tree. "See that?" I look in the direction that she has been pointing, and initially, I don't see anything, but when I look closer, the flash of a wing catches my eye.

"A bird?"

"A mockingjay," she explains. "That's how we'll communicate."

A mockingjay, I repeat in my head. There are mockingjays in the arena? I then say this out loud.

"Of course, they're everywhere. You get used to them in District 11; we see them all the time. When we worked in the orchards, I would call out to the mockingjays, a simple melody that they would pass on and repeat throughout the meadow to spread the message that the day's work is done. If you hear it, then you'll know I'm safe. The same for me."

"Brilliant! Okay, sing it to me," I command. When she does, it may only be four sweet, simple notes, but I can feel the beating of my heart, and I realise that the birds have stopped singing to listen to her. I don't say anything, and suddenly, I want to hear Rue sing properly, not just a short melody, but a proper song. But I don't ask, I just sit there and stare into her eyes. Two soft pools of brown look right back at me, and that's how we sit for a while. We don't exchange any words; we don't need to. Our eyes say everything.

**Rue**

My heart races like crazy, as I contemplate the thought that this could be it. Then, as the butterflies in my stomach begin to stir, I realise that our knees are touching, that Katniss is unconsciously moving closer to me, and a tingling sensation runs down my spine. Her soft gaze, her beautiful eyes, the chaos of her hair; I want every part of her as close to me as physically possible. We are barely inches away, and her scent, the smell of the forest, of the sweat that must line both of our foreheads; the smell of the hunter... it's so close.

A few twigs snap, leaves rustling nearby, and she jerks away, instantly alert for the intruder, and in that instant, I am more angry than I have ever known for whatever it was that broke that moment. Then we identify the cause of the disturbance; a rabbit comes close to our camp, maybe hoping for food. The only thing it gets is an arrow through its brain. Katniss had picked up the bow and shot the creature, and I am surprised to see a look of anger in her eyes too. And it's that, if nothing else, that fills me with hope, that maybe she wanted that kiss to happen as much as I did.

But we don't try anything again. Whether it's because we're both nervous of the moment being ruined again or we feel that it's time for us to get a move on anyway, I'm not sure, but we gather our things and clear the area in silence nonetheless. I start to wonder about the ramifications of this plan.

"What are we going to do with all the food when we get there?" I ask. She smiles tenderly, a reminder of the affection that still exists between us.

"Oh, any number of things. Throw it in the lake. Destroy it. Pee on it," she laughs. "Maybe just steal it and eat it," she suggests, placing a hand on my belly, hollowed by a lifetime without enough food. "It doesn't matter, it's so much easier to destroy things than to make them, you know." As she says it, I just hope that it isn't a metaphor for whatever connection we have.

When we're ready, Katniss is about to leave, when I stop her.

"Katniss, if this is the last time I see you..." I worry, and then wonder what I'm going to follow that up with.

"No, I'm not even going to let you consider that possibility," she winks, but she doesn't leave straight away. She walks right up to me and holds both of my hands in hers. They're unbelievably warm.

"Rue, here's a promise to you right now, and this is a promise I will never break: I am going to come back for you." She kisses me on the cheek and runs off before I can say anything else. I touch my cheek, too stunned to move, feeling the place where her lips touched me. After a while, I snap out of it and realise my priority now is to get moving.

When I find a clearing in the woods that looks about right, I start gathering wood, and set about lighting the flame, with it, igniting all my fear that I'm about to lose the one good thing left in my life.

**Charlotte**

The Careers traditionally stockpile the most food in the Hunger Games, and the Games are aptly named because, without food, you die. This seems too obvious for anyone to actually point out, but it's a fact that I need to take into consideration, because I don't know how to survive off the forest. And if I heard the two lovers correctly, they're planning on destroying the biggest food source in the Games. So I have to get some of it before they do.

The annoying part is, in District 5, all we do is work in poisonous factories and spend the rest of our time inside. So I never was any good at running, and nor are the majority of the District 5 tributes (my District partner didn't even last at the Cornucopia.) It's not long before I'm already having to stop for breath, but at least I got a head a start. I take a quick sip of some water I've been able to salvage, and then head straight off again, panting heavily. Fortunately, I wasn't that far from the Careers' camp in the first place, when I was watching the lovers. So it's only about another minute or two when I approach the end of the trees, and slow to a steady walk (I need it.) From where I stand, I can see all of them are hanging around, eating. Quite by coincidence, just a few minutes after I arrive, they disappear into the woods. No... it's not a coincidence, I realise. It's them. I look back and see the smoke in the sky, and realise their plan has begun, they've made a distraction. Excellent.

Before one of the two can materialise, I run out towards the camp, and evaluate their supplies. Just like I noticed earlier. Mined. I'm not exactly happy about this, but the thought of explosives doesn't fill me with terror either, I've worked with them before and I know a lot about landmines. It's with the greatest care, though, that I begin to trace a path towards the crate of supplies, careful to only put one foot down on the ground, doing some precarious balancing to make sure I don't step anywhere near the mines. It only takes even a slight disturbance to the ground around it to trigger them. I'm almost there when I begin to lose my footing, and feel myself falling. I squeal, I can't help myself, but when I place my hands on the ground to support myself, I find I haven't been blown to shreds yet. So far, so good.

I slowly get up and complete the circuit to the supplies, then take as much as I think I can carry without compromising my balance, stuffing it in my pockets and then rolling it up in my shirt as I get as far away from the mines, and the camp, as possible. Whatever's going to happen there, I have no desire to be anywhere near it.

**Katniss**

All I can do is crouch down by the edge of the forest and marvel at her ingenuity. The fox-faced girl outfoxed everybody, got around the trap that the Careers laid by the supplies, and stole their food without triggering a trap. I can only assume that there's some kind of trap there anyway. When Foxface has disappeared, I carefully make my way out towards the camp and start to think about just how this ambush is going to work. I know for sure that I can't repeat Foxface's complicated series of hops to get around the supplies, I need to think outside the box... or maybe find a way of getting rid of the box completely.

**Culan**

I don't need to spend all day wondering what I got myself into. I did enough of that at the training centre. But I knew that allying with the Careers was the only way I was going to stay alive; my skills are few and far between. So when I showed them how to mine their camp, I can only hope that that made me useful enough to live. Eventually, I'm going to start to have to think about escape, as I know this arrangement can't last.

Just please, don't anything go wrong right now.

And that's when I hear the explosions go off.

**Rue**

I've just lit the third fire when I hear it. The loud bangs echo for miles, and there are several of them in succession; all of them coming from the direction of the lake. It feels like I've been physically punched in the stomach, as the realisation hits me that if Katniss didn't get to safety, then she could be... no, don't think like that, she must've known. But how could she? I didn't know there was explosives near the Careers! Maybe she stepped on one by accident and...

NO. I block all of those images from my head, and know that the most important thing is to get back to her, to safety. But before I can move anywhere, they find me. There are four of them: the two from District 2, the one from 1, and the nervous boy who I think is from 3. Straight away, my first instinct is to run, but of all people, the one that restrains me is the boy from 1 with the bad leg. "Katniss!" I scream, not even sure if she's alive, let alone able to come to my aid, to fulfil her promise. I try to wriggle out of his grasp, and almost make it, but the brute from 2 is faster. He lunges with his sword, and the blade digs right into my thigh, where the pain is like no pain I've ever experienced before. Being whipped once upon a time was bad enough, but this is a pain that goes all the way inside, shoots through you like poison that makes you double-over and wish for nothing but death. When he pulls the sword out, it's covered in my blood, which pools at my leg when I slump to the floor, barely conscious. Barely... almost... slipping away from... no, I'm... no...

The last clear thought I'm able to muster has two syllables.

_Katniss_.


	11. Chapter 11: Haymitch

A/N: Sorry for the long wait, busy week with work experience! And no, you still don't get to find out the fate of Katniss or Rue ;). Instead...

**Haymitch**

The viewing room isn't exactly Capitol standards, but it's comfortable enough. Deep brown leather sofas let me slouch while I'm watching the huge plasma-screen televisions mounted on the wall; the floor is hard but free of any clutter (or, it was before I came in,) and minibars on the side are stocked with food, drink and a great deal of alcohol. Telephones line a wooden counter not far from where I'm sitting; as a mentor, it's my job to accept gifts for my two tributes. Only the donors living in the Capitol actually come into the viewing room to present a gift, the other districts usually do so through their mayor or governor. In 12, one of Mayor Undersee's major responsibilities during the Games is to mediate gifts to the mentor in the Capitol; but with a district as poor as 12, that's not much of a responsibility.

I've only recently been ushered into the viewing room. I'm not exactly a prisoner, but there's not much else for me to go, given that this building comprises mainly of viewing rooms and offices. It doesn't matter anyway, I'm here for the majority of the time in the Hunger Games. I can't exactly guarantee I'll be sober, but I'll be here...

The minute I walked in here, the first thing I did was to crash on the sofa and bury my head in my palms. Every year. I've been lucky to get two children who make that many days in the arena. And these two were so loved by the audience. _Like it makes a damn difference, they're just as happy to watch them die_, I reflected dully, and it's then that the bottle made its appearance. I only made it a few minutes.

I think about the boy and the girl I got this year. They weren't your typical starved weaklings from 12, there was something about them. I don't know much about spirits that don't come in a bottle but both of them had something like it; a soul, a passion. They've got the fight... oh, I never know, maybe they'll even make it a few days...

_Alban and Yate, that was their names. Alcohol can push it out of my mind temporarily, but I never forget the names or the faces of the people I have to see die every year. And those two only died last year. They didn't make the two days. They barely made the Cornucopia; Alban was wounded in a struggle but he got out okay... until the Careers got him only an hour later. And Yate... no, I don't even want to think about how that poor starved creature left._

I take a swig, and then hold the bottle in my arms, not wanting to let go but knowing I already have.

The two large screens in the middle show the girl and boys' respective positions. Twenty two other screens dotted on the wall and around the room track the progress of the other tributes, and a few more screens show general panning shots of the arena. Nobody's watching me, but I don't show any emotion on my face all the same. They survived the Cornucopia, both of them, and the girl barely got out alive after District 2 threw a knife at her. The boy confronted the Careers and managed to secure an alliance... I want to be relieved, but all I feel is the tension, waiting for the moment when they both die. Waiting for it so I don't have to deal with this anymore. Right now, I'm sober enough. I don't want to miss the early parts of the Games. Well, I do, I want to miss all of it, but that's not the way it works. And I promised her I'd be sober when she needed it. Now, she needs it.

He made a smart move. I don't know or care much about the motives but teaming up with the Careers was a good strategy. It's not him I focus on, though. I turn my attention to the left, where she's trekking through the woods, still looking for water. She's moving at a reasonable pace, keeping her head up and not looking too down so far, but I still wonder if there's any hope for her.

_She was one of my best tributes, Arianne. The boy was nothing to look at, but she was strong, she could fight, and she did fight. District 12 was left reeling in shock at the killer that had come out of this impoverished child from the Seam, where my boy and girl now live. Arianne destroyed a lot of the obstacles that stood in her way... made it to the final eight tributes... and then she died. It was the furthest thing from glamorous or heroic, her death was from something as simple as tripping in the forest and dashing her head against the rock. Against all the odds, when she could even have won, she died. It was huge talk in the Capitol. Sometimes, it doesn't matter how hard you fight, how much effort you put in, things can still not go to plan._

It hasn't gone to plan for her. From what I can gather of the footage I'm seeing, of her in a tree with the Careers nearby, she may have realised that the boy is among them. The District 6 girl is already dead, and I wonder if this is it for the girl, too... either way, their star-crossed lover tactic is going to be hard to maintain.

No, she's safe. The Careers have left. As she gets down from the tree and gets on her way, I can see that the struggle against thirst is ever so slowly beginning to wear on her. She's walking more slowly, dragging her feet, stopping more frequently, and I know it will get worse if she doesn't find water soon. I scroll over to the aerial view of the arena, which is hooked up to several buttons that allow you to look over different parts of the arena. I push a few and find her general area... aha, there it is! I can only dearly hope she finds it.

But she doesn't. Eventually, she says it.

"Water."

No. Not yet, you're so close...

I sit up on the edge of my seat, ignoring the telephones that are suddenly trilling by the dozen, willing her to find the pond that sits so close. But I don't think she will. She's barely moving, dragging herself forward like an injured mule forced to bear the weight of the world. Maybe she realises why I haven't sent her anything, when so many people want to send her water... should I?

No. She found it! She's barely conscious, but she's alive, and right next to the pond. When she realises this, she buries herself in the water, and my mind is put at rest. She'll last a little longer.

Fire. Burning. Smoke. Rest. Ambush. Running. Trees. Tracker-jackers. Venom. Unconsciousness. And now friendship. It's been a day or two, and she and one of the other tributes seem to have made an alliance very quickly. She's from District 11, another one of the poorer districts; they have something in common, at least. But I can see already that this may be more than an alliance. It may be more than friendship. From the moment the girl and District 11 allied with one another, they seem to share a special bond. I know from the coverage of the Games I receive now and then that this hasn't been missed, that people are already at this stage speculating on the nature of the bond between the two girls in the arena.

_Emery and Rupert were district partners, but they were far more than just that. They didn't make a big deal of it like my boy now did, but it was obvious from the way they spoke about each other in the interviews, from the way they pursued each other and then looked out for each other in the Games, that they were in love, and the most ill-fated pair in the Hunger Games. When Emery and Rupert found each other, all they did was hold onto each other like the reality of the bloodbath would go away as long as they had each other. Eventually, they managed to work together and function as a team, but even then they found it impossible to separate themselves from the other in case one got killed. But eventually, the reality was made clear to them. At least one of them had to die. It was Emery who did it, who pulled out the knife and, despite Rupert's protests, plunged the blade into her own heart, so that Rupert wouldn't have to do it himself. When Rupert had stopped sobbing, which went on for hours, he finally said goodbye to Emery, let them collect the body, and then followed in her footsteps. They are a constant reminder that the Games are the place where love comes to die._

The two _are_ a team. She and 11 make a good pair with their combined knowledge of wildlife, hunting, navigation and laying low. My hopes were raised yet again by 11, knowing that two of them would make them - yes, easier to find, but - at a far better position to defend themselves. And I don't think I was wrong about them. It's as if the television screen has a filter and I can see the glowing chains of energy that link them at the heart. I start drinking more heavily at that point, but I'm still sober as I contemplate the nature of her and 11. I sigh. How is this ever going to work out for her?

It didn't work out for him. He was the first reminder that hope is a very bad thing to have.

The District 3 boy managed to make himself useful in the strangest way. Dangerous, almost, in its cleverness. He dug out the landmines around the metal plates and managed to use them to booby-trap the Careers camp, for which he was kept alive. But when she and 11 plan to ambush the camp, I realise before I see it happen what's going to go wrong. She's too close when she detonates the mines, and is thrown back with the force of a giant's arm hurling her into the forest. She's out before she slams into the ground.

Katniss was the second reminder.


	12. Chapter 12: Bloom

**Katniss**

When I come to, I wake to a blurry hell. I can only just make out my surroundings; there's a lot of green, which I think is from the trees, and orange, flickering and flashing nearby. Pungent fumes fill my nostrils, and I can barely hear anything for ringing in my ears. My vision is starting to settle a little; all around me is burning, blurring; fires around me, fires inside me, fires in my mind. Where am I?

Something vaguely registers in my ears; a piercing scream cuts through the dull fog. _Rue_ says a voice in the back of my mind, and I try to stand up. I can't stay on my feet, and I slump to the floor, rapidly losing consciousness.

_No... Rue... I must... save her..._ I think, before the darkness swallows me once again.

I wake for the second time, and my mind is clearing slightly. I realise straight away how desperate the situation is. I scramble to my feet and this time manage to stay upright.

"Rue!" I shout, not caring about the Careers and barely able to hear my own voice anyway. "Rue!"

Despite my body's protests, I scramble for the treeline. Every part of my body threatens to shut down if I go any further but I can't leave her, I must find her, must save her.

_"Rue, here's a promise to you right now, and this is a promise I will never break: I am going to come back for you."_

I'm not going to break that promise. I push on, calling out to her again and again until my throat is raw and I can shout no more, and even then I keep saying her name over and over again. I am running until the pain becomes unbearable, but I must find her, I must. In my disoriented state, I have no concept of time, all I know is running, calling out to her, praying I'm moving in the right direction, praying it's not already too late.

When I hear the whimpers, I nearly collapse again in relief, but I must keep whatever vestiges of energy are left in me. Those screams definitely belonged to her, and if she's alive, she needs my help.

"Rue" I croak, and when the whimpers intensify, I know that I've found her. I push my way through the trees and spot her lying on the floor, face contorted in agony, clutching her thigh, lying in a pool of her own blood. When she sees me, she cries weakly,

"Katniss!"

"It's okay, I'm here," I tell her as I kneel down by her side. She doesn't have a lot of time left if I don't do something, so I don't waste it on any more words. My mother was the person who everybody was brought to when they were sick or injured, so I've seen a fair amount of blood in my life, but it doesn't make it any easier to deal with. Nonetheless, the first thing I do is to rip off my shirt and tear it into several pieces, wrapping them around her leg in my best attempt to stop the blood loss. It doesn't matter that I'll lose some body heat in the days to come, not when I risk losing Rue instead. My attempts at copying mother's bandaging technique are sketchy at best, but at this point, it's better than nothing. And Rue needs all the help she can get right now.

**Rue**

She's here. She came. She's safe. Well, no, she looks almost as bad as I am, but she's alive... I have every reason to doubt that I'll last more than a day. But at least the last thing I'll see when I die will be Katniss. The girl on fire. The girl I love.

**Katniss**

Rue closes her eyes as she slips into unconsciousness. I place my hands to her chest and breathe a sigh of relief when I feel a slow but steady heartbeat under the surface. She's alive, but she may not be much longer if she doesn't get help. But this is the Hunger Games. Death is entertainment to them, not something to be avoided. So how can I ensure that Rue stays alive?

An awful thought courses through me like ice. Should I keep her alive?

_Yes_, my mind screams. But there's a niggling voice in the back of my head that reminds me that there can only be one victor of the Hunger Games. Would it be better to let her die in peace than to force her onwards only for her to die later, possibly in even more pain? No, I can't let her die, I realise. It doesn't matter if she has to die later on, if I have the choice between Rue dying and Rue living, the choice is unquestionable. I cannot, will not go on without her. Without her in my life... well, very little but Prim and Gale matter to me but her.

I love her. I love her, I love her, I love her. I know it, now that I'm so close to losing her. Rue is the world to me now, and I would never choose to win the Games and go back to my family if I had to live without her. So right now, my number one priority is to help her in every way possible. I gently slip my arms underneath her frail frame and lift her up, which isn't all that difficult given how light she is. I know where she needs to be. I set off at as fast a walking pace as I dare - and as my body will let me - making sure not to rock her about too much as we move. I'm constantly on my guard, making sure to measure my tread now that I have slightly more control over my senses. By now, the Careers will have reached their camp, wrecked from the explosion, and will be out looking for us any moment. I feel a lot more vulnerable with Rue - if they jump me then I'm in no position to defend myself, or her - so I keep a steady pace.

Fortunately, there's no sign of any of the Careers, and we make it in about an hour. I feel a little cold without a shirt, but that matters the least right now. We're at the river, the river where we camped only a day or two ago, but it feels like a lifetime ago now. I set her down gently by the water's edge, unravelling the bloody cloth to get a better look at the wound. If she doesn't get it cleaned, infection will set in, so I lower her into the water ever so slowly, gingerly washing the blood away. It's not enough but it's the best I can do for her right now.

The important question is: How on Earth am I going to keep Rue alive?

**Rue**

I wake some time around the evening, groggy, in every kind of pain and barely able to move, but very much alive. I'm surrounded by foliage; camouflaged, I suppose, and near running water. A stream. She took me to the river. But where is this? If I didn't know better, I'd say this was some sort of small cave, hidden with a curtain of leaves and branches. Katniss is nowhere to be seen.

I try to sit up, but I let out a cry as the small effort makes my pain intensify, and I lay back down straight away. Suddenly, there she is, alerted by the sound of me in pain. She's coming towards me, relief etched across her beautiful face, and suddenly, I'm happier to see her than I ever could have been. She kneels down beside me and strokes my cheek, then brushes my hair away from my face.

"Don't try to move, little Rue," she sussurates. "Just lie there and try to eat something." I see that she's carrying a dead bird which she must just have been skinning. She tears off a bit, and I don't feel remotely hungry but she makes me eat it anyway. Okay, the food helps slightly. But her being there helps a lot more. I try not to think too hard about the fact that she's not wearing a shirt, but she does look striking. Her stomach is smooth, not as concave as mine, but still very thin. On an impulse, I reach out and stroke it, and she giggles, shying away from my hand.

"That tickles!" So that only makes me want to stroke her stomach even more, but I can't reach, so I simply smile at her, too exhausted for words. She smiles back, and together we sit like that for a long time. It's like we don't need words to communicate, our eyes do all the work. Never mind the fact that we're being broadcast live around Panem, all that matters now is that she's here, together with me.

The next day or two are a brief respite from the horror of the Games. Katniss hunts nearby, making sure never to stray too far from the small cave where I rest, and I can do nothing but let her feed me and tend to me and hope for the best. The pain in my leg is still hard to ignore, but the bleeding has stopped, and Katniss' presence helps. When she's with me, which is whenever she can avoid leaving, we talk to one another, partly for something to do, and partly because I love hearing the sound of her voice.

"What's your brother like, what with all those sisters?" she asks. I smile, but beneath that smile is sadness. I try not to think too hard about the fact that I might not ever see him or any of them again.

"Lupin is a handful. He's the sweetest thing, but he's only seven, so it's hard to get him to stay quiet; he talks so much. But he's so happy, no matter the situation, always looking at the bright side of everything. Lupin's our little optimist. And he manages fine with the girls." Katniss grins at the thought of the little boy that she doesn't know, my affection seeping into her like the summer warmth, no doubt. "Now tell me about Prim," I ask her, and I see in her face the same expression I wore just a moment ago. I know how much she wants to be with her little sister again, the one that she volunteered to risk her own life for.

"Prim is..." she starts, struggling to find the words. "She's... she's the reason I come home, the reason I bring back food. I mean, my mother needs caring for, but Prim is the one who I'm always on the lookout for. She's 12 years old, but she's bright and she's intelligent and she's... just wonderful. I love my little sister. If there was anything that made me want to win the Games, it's Primrose."

Lupin. Rose. Daisy. Tansy. Violet. Primrose. Rue. Katniss. We're all flowers in this world. Some of us don't grow quite the way we want to, others simply wilt. But some will bloom into something truly beautiful, and of those who do, it's the kind of love that Katniss holds for Prim, and that I hold for Katniss, that makes it happen.


	13. Chapter 13: My Gift to You

A/N: This chapter is dedicated to Helena James, one of the most wonderful, amazing people I know, who only deserves the best out of life! It's finally here, and this one's for you xxx :D

**Katniss**

Rue is the first to break the silence. "What's your favourite thing in the whole world, Katniss?"

The question takes me aback. Mostly because I'm not even sure myself.

No, I am sure. But she's not the answer to the question. Okay, the second most favourite thing...

"What would you say if I said lamb stew?" I tease, but Rue seriously considers the question.

"I'd tell you clearly haven't tried the grains and seeds back home," she smiles. "Delicious."

I laugh - not too loudly - and marvel again at the fact that this amazing little girl, so full of dark history, can make me laugh so easily. But Rue's smile fades.

"You didn't answer the question."

So I seriously think.

_Hunting, running through the woods with a bow in hand and Gale, my friend, by my side, watching my back just like I'm watching his._

My second-favourite thing.

_The look on Prim's face when she got Buttercup, the beast of a cat she's always playing with, or Lady, her goat that I brought home with me one day._

In the whole of Panem.

_The day me and Gale brought back a feast at Christmas, and Greasy Sae prepared one of the best meals the villagers of the Seam had ever had, and everyone walked home with full bellies, smiles on their faces._

In the whole, wide world.

I pause.

"Nope. Still the lamb stew," I wink, and she punches me playfully, grinning.

"Come on, your turn," I nudge her.

"Music," the reply comes easily, out of her mouth before she even has to think about the answer. "Music is a whole world onto itself, full of language, of colours, of shapes, of energy. Happiness, sadness, rage, depression, euphoria... music is the language of the soul, Katniss," she tells me earnestly, and I'm captivated by every word, fascinated by her perspective over something I've thought to be completely useless.

"The language of love," I breathe.

"The language of love," she agrees.

"Rue," I take her warm hands in mine. "Sing for me." There's no question in it, I know now that I must hear her voice, that her singing is important as living. So she doesn't question it at all. Instead, she takes a deep breath and sings.

**Rue**

"There in the fields,

Together we lie

The song of the birds,

Wings of a butterfly.

"There in the clouds,

A picture they paint true,

The best time of my life,

Here I spend with you.

"Among the daisies and tulips and violets and rues,

The green sagittaria's my gift to you.

"The Sun, it descends,

Skies of orange and red

The heather below us,

Our twilit bed.

"The Moon, like a friend,

It watches from the sky,

Your beauty radiant,

As we lay bathed in light.

"In the summer meadow,

The sunflowers bloom

The best time of my life,

Here I am with you...

"Among the daisies and tulips and violets and rues,

The green sagittaria's my gift...

To you..."

There has never been a longer silence between us. Katniss is completely still, her eyes closed, entranced. Glitter running down her cheek as the sun shines on a lone tear. Maybe it's five minutes, or maybe's it's thirty, when she finally speaks.

"Sagittaria. Another name for Katniss." Her eyes open. "You changed that song around a little, didn't you?"

"Maybe just a little," I winked. "But rue was in there from the start, I promise."

"Yes," she says, and holds a hand to her chest. "Rue was in there from the start."

My stomach turns somersaults as I realise what she's saying. And for some reason, it's that that gives me the confidence to do what I do next.

I smile coyly.

"Remember what almost happened the last time I sang?" I begin, but before I can do a thing, she's right up next to me, pressing her lips against mine and refusing to let go. A million feelings at once explode within. Every part of it feels so right, and I kiss her back, our lips moving in perfect harmony. We are locked in each others embrace, my arms caressing her back, her fingers running through my hair. Her smell is overpowering, and only makes me want to somehow draw closer, lock myself tighter around Katniss, the girl that I love, the girl that loves me. Her tongue gently probes at the edge and I willingly part my lips, letting her explore my mouth, before my tongue meets hers and together they dance. That's what it's like for what feels like an eternity, absolute bliss, the living proof that happiness can be found in the world, before we finally let go. And when we do, we kiss again, and then again, and again, unable to resist each others touch for more than a few seconds.

When we finally stop, we are both out of breath, my heart threatening to beat out of my chest, flames coursing through me and lighting up my world. My cheeks are hot. Suddenly _I_ am the girl on fire, set alight by this beautiful girl, and there's nothing that I want to do more but spend every living second from now until when I die, with her.

"I love you, Katniss." Saying the words feels almost as good as hearing Katniss say them.

"I love you too, Rue," she breathes, flustered. We don't let go of each other; desperate to remain connected in case someone tries to break us apart. My hand falls into hers, she holds it close and places it at her breast, then closes both of her hands over mine. I can feel her heartbeat, which is anything but steady, beating with the pace of someone who knows they have moments left to live. I don't let myself mull over the fact that we might.

"Rue," she breathes, barely able to comprehend what happened. "Rue, I've finally got an answer for you."

"An answer?"

"To the question you asked me earlier. What my favourite thing is. That kiss, that's what. That was the best eternity of my life."

"Eternity's not long enough," I say as we kiss once more.


	14. Chapter 14: Yep ::: M rated :::

Author's Note: Hey guys. I'm so sorry I've been keeping y'all waiting for so long; but not long after Chapter 12, this laptop died. That didn't stop me from writing, writer's block and procrastination stopped me from writing; I was just discouraged by not having access to my plans for this chapter. Also, a note on this chapter: it was originally planned to be an extra story for the people who didn't want to read an M-rated, but I've decided I'm going to include it in the main story and flag it on the Chapter.

This chapter is dedicated to Helena James, the most wonderful, amazing person and bestest friend in the whole wide world. I love you!

**Charlotte**

I sit quietly, unobserved as ever, an intruder into the privacy of two girls in love, soaking up the happiness that spills from every part of them. A powerful ocean crests around them, waves peaking and crashing; momentary leaps of joy that keep recurring as the realisation of their love for one another once again hits them. The ocean spreads to where I perch in the foliage, and I happily take in the waves of their happiness. Yet, for all the water there is a fire, too; the passion in which they exchange kisses again and again, unable to stay away from each other for more than a few seconds; the way they hold each other in a desperation, determined not to be extinguished and washed away; the glow of their bliss that could protect them from any worldly danger. And both of them are so beautiful.

Love. There is love in the Hunger Games, and so impossibly strong that nothing can keep me away from this pair, for it's just so beautiful. Like wandering in a barren wasteland for days to come across a bubbling spring. My desperation for some end to the death, pain and suffering has led me to this voyeurism, I haven't seen anything like it since Emery Raifort and Rupert Bellamy.

My thoughts turn darker at this point. District 5 remembers Emery and Rupert well, and with it comes the constant reminder that love has no place among death.

**Katniss**

When I was thrown into the Hunger Games, never had it occurred to me that I would ever feel so happy, so right, so complete. Up until now it had been entirely about surviving. And now that I hold Rue in my arms, the memory of her lips permanent in my head, I know that I won't be able to do that without her. All it took was a small prompt from Rue to realise what I had been slowly coming to realise for a few days now, and that was that I'm in love with her. Despite being so small and so sweet, there is a flame that burns strong within her, that keeps her going even when the situation is at its worst. She has held her own all of her life, was forced to take care of her family, and now has been forced to fight to the death with a group of murderous teenagers - like me in so many ways. My feelings for Rue are not just of love, but of admiration, admiration for her unbeatable spirit.

"I love you." The words are out before it occurs to me just how many dozens of times I've already said it, but Rue still beams, her dark skin reddening, and says

"I love you too!"

"Yeah, but I love you more," I wink.

"Well, I love you the most," and she sticks her tongue out; on instinct, I lean forward and lick it. She giggles - actually giggling despite how weak she still is and falls backwards. I climb over her, my hands on either side of her head and my hair curtained on her face. Our lips touch effortlessly, hers so small and soft. They pull into a grin, and suddenly she can't keep kissing me because she's laughing again, actually laughing! When I tilt my head to the side and look at her quizzically she only says,

"I just can't believe it."

"That we're together, that I haven't run away yet, that you're still blushing...?" This just makes her laugh even more, and I can't help it, I break into a giggle too, so spellbound am I by the chimes of her laughter. Eventually, she calms, with only the most beautiful smile left on her face as her deep brown eyes stare into mine. I'm suddenly very conscious of the fact that I'm wearing no shirt, only a bra. Rue's hand reaches up and gently caresses my cheek, moving down to my collarbone, and then my neck. As she moves across my shoulder and down my arm, she reaches out with her other hand to cup my breast through the thin material. Though surprised, I don't object, I just rest over her body as she moves her thumb in circles. Tracing the edge of my breast with her three middle fingers. Her other hand is running along my bare back, sending small shivers of pleasure down my spine every now and then. Her smile is replaced with a look of growing curiosity as her thumb moves over to my nipple, but when she strokes it, I exhale sharply. She stops, a worried look in her eyes.

"No, it's just... I've not felt like that before. It's... good." I take her other hand from my back and place it on the other boob, and Rue strokes both nipples, fascinated by my reaction. They start to harden through the bra, and I can tell that Rue likes the feel of my breasts, and likes the excitement that she can see in my eyes from the way she touches me.

I try to get up to move into a more comfortable position, but Rue takes my shoulders and brings me back down; I fall straight into her kiss, but I can tell straight away that something is different. There is an urgency to her kiss, her pace quickening, and I find myself responding in the same way, my hands beginning to move over her body; stroking her shoulders, her hips, her thighs, her stomach, every part of her that there is to explore. In the same way she explores me, learning my body like a road on which she plans to make many journeys, and her fingers often find sensitive parts of my body completely by accident. When she hears a gasp from me, she returns to those areas, caressing them more intently, learning through trial and error what feels good and what doesn't. Her experimentation makes me realise that she is as much as novice as I am; that we are both embarking together in a dimension we've never explored.

That's when I realise where we are going, and I slow down, leaning away from Rue slightly. I take in her small build and see the beautiful girl that I fell in love with; and then I remind myself that she is twelve years old. Is this right? She notices my hesitation, and she takes her hands away to put them on my shoulders, once again she is worried. Maybe worried that I am having second thoughts about the whole thing. But no, I can't bear to take her somewhere she doesn't want to go, and as the older girl I feel duty bound to protect her virtue. And then I think about Rue, the grace with which she leaps from tree to tree, the strong arm which held my bow, the confidence with which she took all her clothes off to bathe in the river, and I realise that I'm being naïve. Twelve years old is just a number, and Rue is far older than her years suggest. So it's just caution that makes me ask,

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Absolutely," she says with not even a second's hesitation, and I realise I was right. She is as ready for this as I am. So it's with a smile that I kiss her and bring her hands up to the clasp of my bra.

**Rue**

When Katniss leans away, I'm scared. Life has been so harsh and bleak that now that this happiness has poured into every part of my soul, I'm scared it's going to be taken away again. That Katniss will tell me she doesn't really love me. That she'll decide I'm not worth it, or that she can't bear to love me if only to lose me. But then when she asks me if I'm sure that I want to go any further, I realise it's for my sake she's worried, and it is with a lot of relief that I tell her "Absolutely."

She turns around and guides my hands to her back; she wants me to take her bra off. I've never even worn a bra before, let alone known how to take one off, but I know I can figure this out. I take a good look at the metal hooks, experimentally tug at it, and after not long I've succeeded. My heart jumps as the material slips and falls to the floor, for I'm so excited. She turns around, and I stare with absolute fascination at her boobs. It's not uncommon to see women bathing openly in District 11, so I've seen them before, but never with the knowledge that I'm about to touch them. And touch them I do.

I try what I did earlier and brush her nipples: she seems to like it even more now she's not wearing the bra. Her bare chest is mesmerising, and her skin is so soft. As I stroke her I rest my head against her chest, nuzzling up against it like a pillow. Katniss finds my head and draws it away from her chest with a soft kiss, but I find myself returning to her chest with an idea. I take my hands away and poke my tongue at her nipples.

"Whoa!"

"Is that a good whoa or a bad whoa?"

"That's a great whoa, I like that, Rue..."

Encouraged, I lick her still hardening nipples, liking the feel of them on my tongue. I can feel her shivering against me, but I move to other parts of her top, licking her breasts, the skin around them, her belly; all the while toying with her boobs in one way or another. I leave one hand to this task and take the other down her body, following the contours of her body down to the top of her tawny trousers. I want to go further, and I can tell from the quickening of her breath that she wants me to go further too, but a belt is denying me access. Again, this is another small confusion, but I manage to eventually get this undone, and I toss it aside. My fingers hover over her trousers, hesitant but eager to explore. I only play with the rim of her trousers, and then find the edge of Katniss' underwear, drawing it out as much as possible. Then, I slide my hand in, and I realise with a grin that I've found it.

**Charlotte**

What I'm seeing here is possibly even more unexpected than the initial romance. But it's so captivating, seeing the beautiful dark-skinned girl and the pretty blonde exploring each others bodies like that. Neither of them know what they are doing, but with the confusion is an intense excitement, the air of two girls who are ready for adventure. Just watching the two of them is exciting. On an impulse, I slip a finger into my pants and watching the pair with increasing trepidation, begin to play.

**Katniss**

I've never known what this kind of intense pleasure was until Rue begins to touch my vagina. It isn't with any real confidence or idea of where to go, but with a soft finger that plays over the edges and folds in such a way that still feels unbelievably good. She slowly feels all around it, and having the skin on my pelvis stroked feels almost as good. I realise I'm gently moaning, and Rue is smiling at this, so she continues to caress me down there for a while. Eventually, the trousers and the pants come off altogether, and Rue has unrestricted access, which she takes full advantage of. It may have been half an hour or it may have been mere minutes but the raw pleasure that came from her playing with me begins to build up slowly, cresting and falling, cresting and falling, again and again. Each time, I peak slightly higher. Every part of it feels so good, and so right, that I say to her,

"Rue, my love... go further." And she does. She hesitates at first, but she works her finger inside, not very deeply at first. I imagine she's worried about hurting me, but on the contrary, every time it just feels so much better. She gently pulses her fingers in and out, and as she gets more confident, she starts to work her way in deeper, convinced that I'm not in pain. I continue to moan, getting louder as she gets deeper, having never been a part of such a good feeling. The world could have passed us by ten times and we wouldn't have noticed, time has no meaning at this point. All I'm aware of is Rue down by my naked body, happiness spreading outwards from my centre, the waves still getting higher and higher. Rue is in as deep as she could possibly go, and she's pushing in and out a lot faster. The tension in my crotch only increases, and as the ocean continues to rise, I can no longer hold anything in as it breaks the banks. I'm riding on the wave, sailing in absolute ecstasy, feeling so impossibly happy I feel like crying. Everything is released now, and I notice a small trail of fluid pouring out of me around Rue's finger. She continues to push in and out but is getting slower now that something had happened, and eventually she puls her finger out entirely. With it comes another steady flow of liquid.

"What's that?" she muses aloud, and holds her finger up for inspection, which is covered in the stuff.

"Not sure," I reply breathlessly. "Here, bring me your finger," I say, and she did so. I take a tentative lick.

"Wow, tastes pretty good to me!" Rue takes her hand back and sticks her finger in her mouth, licking off all the juices, and I can tell from her expression that she agreed with me. But I wasn't prepared for what comes next: she leans towards my legs and puts her head in between them, licking my vagina and cleaning off the rest of the juices herself. She's not the only one enjoying herself, it's unbelievable how good her licking me feels.

She grins, a small drop of the stuff on the edge of her lips, so I sit up and kiss her, still completely naked, and wet from whatever just came out of me. I can still taste it in her mouth, and am enjoying this kiss a lot more for that reason. I'm hot, red all over and still in a state of euphoria from what Rue had just done, and I want more, I want a lot more. But Rue's turn for the adventure still hasn't come yet, so instead I hold her in my arms, not bothering to put my clothes on, just cuddling her. But I know that as long as the two of us are alive, we have many more adventures to come.

Rue's head is buried in my shoulder.

"Rue?" I whisper.

"Mmmhhm?" she mumbles into me, and I pause before saying,

"...Did we just have sex on live television?"

**Charlotte**

Yep.


	15. Chapter 15: Two of us

A/N: Writer's block and procrastination have kept this chapter from coming for so long :). Hopefully I won't keep y'all guys waiting so long for the next one! By the way, I'd like to state about the previous chapter, the smut chapter, that it isn't part of the canon of this fic; it was written for entertainment as a "bonus" chapter I suppose. From here on is the story :D.

**Clove**

Gritting my teeth, I place one foot in front of the other, all too aware of the situation we're in. I still can't think about it. They outsmarted us. They actually outsmarted us and used the mines against us. At least that District 3 moron and the little bitch from 11 are dead. So are Caitlin and Glimmer. Cato, Marvel and me are all that's left of the pack. All because of 11 and 12.

"Damnit!" I yell and kick a nearby tree stump, which only serves to put me in more pain. Cato looks at me irritatedly, but also with a world-weary exasperation that tells me he might not be able to take much more of this. Is he already becoming weak?

Am I?

No, I cannot, must not be weak, or show it. At the first sign of weakness, they'll come and attack, doesn't matter who. Maybe even Cato will turn on me. But at the end, only one of us can win, so...

It has to be me. I can't let any of them win; this is what I came here to do.

**Rue**

It's becoming almost second nature now. It's sitting on the tree branch, barely aware of the danger looking it in the eyes. I pull out the arrow and slot it into the string, then pull the string back all the way, keeping my elbow cocked out at just the right angle. _Whoosh_. I pull the string back and a dull thunk tells me that I've found the target; a rustle of leaves marks its fall.

Later on, when I've skinned and cleaned the squirrel, Katniss and I sit down to eat. We sit around a small fire, not large enough to produce thick smoke, but good enough to give us some warmth and cook the meat. We eat in silence, her arm wrapped around me, keeping me close, keeping me safe. One squirrel is hardly enough to sustain the two of us, but neither of us want to get up. I shuffle round until I can see her face, staring into her eyes. They're marked with sadness.

I gently kiss her on the lips. "What's wrong?"  
>At first she doesn't answer, and I stroke her cheek as she contemplates. Eventually, when her voice does come out, it follows tears.<p>

"How can we do this, Rue?" she murmurs. I feel a lead weight drop in my stomach as I realise what she's saying. But I ask anyway:

"Do what?"

"How can we be together? In here, in this - this bloodbath, this battlefield of death, and pain and suffering, and - how can we ... how?" Gentle sobs run through her, and I know the kind of pain she is feeling, because I've felt it ever since I met her. The fear that I might lose her. So this is what I tell her.

"Katniss, I know what it's like to lose people you love. So do you. And I know that the fear of losing someone you love is just as bad. But we can't keep thinking about it. We have to go on, my love."

It's the first time I've ever called her that, and it seems to calm her. For she and I are in love, how can we ever deny that now? I suppress the tears that I feel rising in me: one of us has got to be strong.

"All we can do is be with each other until the end, and never let go until then," I say with more confidence than I feel. She looks at me with red-rimmed eyes and smiles weakly, pulling me into a tight embrace. Neither of us let go.

**Thresh**

Silence. All around me. No more cannons, for now anyway. They've left me alone since the Games began, and it looks like it'll stay that way until things become really desperate. Or maybe those bastards in robes will send something awful after me to flush me out. Well, let them come, I don't care.

This wheat field is my only source of survival. Food, shelter, bedding... and cover, for if they ever decide to come after me. Well, if they do, I'll be waiting. A rock in hand.

As I rearrange my meagre supplies, I hear a fanfare of trumpets blasted all around the arena. What? What the hell's going on?

**Charlotte**

It's an announcement. What's this going to be, a "feast"? The voice of Claudius Templesmith booms down from the sky: "Congratulations to the remaining six tributes."

**Cato**

"There has been a rule change!" Clove and I ground to a halt and look to one another, confused, then up at the sky to await the next words.

**Katniss**

"Under the new rule," he says. New rule? There were never really any rules to begin with, apart from 'stay on your plate until the sixty seconds are over.' "If two tributes are allied and are the last to remain, both will be declared winners!"

**Clove**

Cato grins as the news sinks in, and I realise that I probably won't have to kill him after all. _Two tributes can win_.

**Rue**

Claudius Templesmith repeats the announcement again, and this time, I process what he's saying. _Two of us can win. Two of us._ Katniss and I look to one another, and in that one moment, everything is good again, and both of us are beaming. Once again we embrace, but this time out of undiluted joy, and when we kiss once more, it's with the knowledge that this doesn't have to be our last kiss.


End file.
